HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad High Court has suggested the Central government and Medical Council of India to review the Graduate Medical Education Regulations 1997 and say goodbye to minimum age of 17 years, which is compulsory for admission into MBBS course.
Justice Suresh Kumar Kait was allowing a petition by Venkata Dheeraj of Guntur district, seeking to declare the action of the MCI in rejecting eligibility certificate to him for MBBS course for attending screening test conducted by the National Board of Examination on the ground of not having 17 years of age when he joined the MBBS course.
Petitioner’s counsel Y Balaji submitted that the date of birth of his client was Sept 13, 1992, and he took his SSC examination with the permission of the erstwhile AP government in 2005 as a private candidate. Thereafter he completed his Intermediate in 2007 and appeared for Eamcet in 2007, however, he could not succeed. Later the petitioner got admission in International University of Health Sciences in West Indies and the university gave admission to him in its branch attached to a college in Guntur.
The counsel said that after applying to the MCI on April 28, 2010, for eligibility certificate which is mandatory under the MCI Act and his client continued his studies and completed his course. In 2015, the MCI communicated to the petitioner stating that his application was rejected.
The judge ordered the MCI to issue eligibility certificate to the petitioner within two weeks.